Ignited Restraint [EXAM]

The convenient thing about Nymara being your apprentice was that it was pretty easy to keep track of her. You just followed the trail of destruction or, failing that, the shift in temperature.

The inconvenient thing about Nymara being your apprentice was that she was absolutely horrible at being stealthy, subtle, or precise, which meant that if you wished for her to finish a job with no collateral damage you were better off praying that she happened to not destroy anything by chance.

But Akemi was persistent in teaching her student some restraint. She'd already received the paperwork confirming that Nymara was allowed by the guild to take the exam which, upon being successful, would get her registered as a B-Rank mage. This would open up a lot more jobs which would both be more risky and pay better, and be formal recognition of her growth as a mage and an adventurer.

That said, Akemi wasn't planning to make the exam easy. If she merely played into Nymara's strengths it wouldn't be much of a challenge, and she wanted her apprentice to earn this promotion. Only through trials and struggles did people become stronger: merely flexing your strengths did nothing for improvement, it only nurtured conceit. Nymara wasn't the kind of person to start treating other people like trash, but she definitely was in danger of growing a big ego and becoming overconfident.

The raven-haired slayer had been reading in the library, where she could usually be found, when the rise in temperature betrayed the arrival of the redhaired slayer she'd taken under her wing. She didn't even flinch when Nymara kicked open the doors, instead just looking up from the book she was reading. While Nymara's behaviour and presence was the same as always, the cat companion she'd brought with her today was definitely new, even drawing Akemi's attention away from the younger woman for a moment as she instead looked down at him.

"I see. You're one of the exceed, aren't you?" Akemi herself never had any personal connections with any exceed, but for some reason most dragon slayers seemed to meet and befriend one. Most likely the reason why she'd been exempt was that she wouldn't have gotten along with them anyway: the fickle attitude of cats could be rather frustrating. Although this one certainly seemed well-behaved. "You can call me Akemi. We'll take care of your registration into the guild after my apprentice's exam." Truthfully that should probably be done beforehand, but she had her own priorities.

Leaving Lucky alone for the moment, Akemi returned her gaze to the grinning Nymara. "Well, you certainly look as ready as you'll ever be. But you should already be aware that I'm not going to be making it easy for you." Turning around she put the book back where she'd pulled it from the shelf even as she kept talking. "Whenever someone ranks up how they're tested varies a lot, depending on who proctors the exam. Some treat it as a mere formality, but so far as I'm concerned an exam is an opportunity to test your weaknesses, and see if you can overcome them." She gave Nymara a grin. "So if you want to get an idea of what you'll be facing as we make our way to the examination room, just start thinking of those skills you're still lacking in."

It would be a lie to say that Akemi did not to some extent enjoy the idea of watching Nymara flounder to try and compensate for her failings.

Current Appearance:

@Nymara

Akemi raised an eyebrow as the exceed seemed determined to portray himself as a competent warrior. While the winged catfolk could certainly be useful in many ways, both because of their natural ability to fly at high speed and their intellect and cunning, they didn't seem to have much in the way of combat ability. Even those that tried their best to become stronger usually ran into the issue that they were simply not born with the right traits, with only few exceptions. "We'll have to test your combat abilities as well, if you wish to register as an independent member of the guild. If the two of you are planning to stick together it might be easier to sign up as Nymara's companion."

Well, it did seem like Lucky was willing to acknowledge his own shortcomings when actually pushed about them. That was good, because Akemi wasn't going to go along with any delusions of grandeur the cat knight might have. And at least he was quick to point out Nymara's greatest flaw, or at least the one which required the most effort to rectify. "Your ability to keep collateral damage to a minimum is certainly one of the things we'll be testing. Or possibly just the only thing."

She motioned for the two of them to follow her as she led them out of the library and towards the training room. "There won't be any bystanders, but you won't pass if you can't live up to my demands, so don't go thinking that the lack of victims makes things easier." She explained. "We'll be using the training room since we can quickly shape it to suit our needs, and to make sure you don't accidentally destroy anything important."

It would take several minutes to get from the library to the training room, time which Nymara could use to discuss the trials ahead with her new companion. Akemi herself was mentally preparing the trials she'd be subjecting her apprentice to, making sure she had a good image of what they would look like so they could quickly craft the required areas once they were inside.

"Of course, I wouldn't expose you to these challenges if I didn't think you capable of handling them when you actually put your mind to it, so no complaining that it's too difficult." Reaching the training room Akemi would open it and let the two others inside before stepping through and sealing the door behind her. Once that was done she'd get to work shifting the training room's insides to suit her needs.

The featureless room rapidly changed in atmosphere as the walls took on the appearance of dark grey stone, and one side of the room stretched on and on until it was at least two hundred meters long. The door leading out of the training area had disappeared, but instead there was an exit on the far side of the room.

"Aside from minimizing collateral damage, more focused attacks will also be more effective." Akemi placed a hand on her hip and snapped the fingers of her other hand.

The ceiling of the room quickly ascended until it was too far away to see, and large pillars of glistening wood rose up to line both sides of the room length-wise. A solid wall of stone rose up in the distance to block the door as well. "You'll have to demonstrate your ability to use attacks that are both precise and powerful." As she talked Akemi walked past Nymara, a dark claw forming around her free hand. With a downwards swipe she carved a deep line into the floor. "Your first challenge: destroy the stone wall leading to the next challenge without moving past this line. And as a warning..." She turned back to Nymara and indicated the wooden pillars. "If ignited these will quickly fall apart, and they're holding the roof up. They've also been drenched in oil, so if you hit a single one it won't take long before they're all burning. If you can't control your flames the roof will bury the path to the exit and you'll have failed."

Stepping back she watched Nymara carefully. "There's no time limit, but if I think you're making no progress I might step in. Begin when you're ready."

Current Appearance:

@Nymara

An advantage of these kinds of tests was that they gave you an opportunity to look into the minds of those taking them. If you presented someone with a challenge that played to their strengths they'd just brute force it, which might be an adequate display of their competence in their specialized field but otherwise was dreadfully uncreative. Present them with a challenge which exposed their weaknesses and they were forced to maximize their efficiency. Akemi herself always sought to be as skilful as she was powerful, for the exact reason that if she ever came across an obstacle which couldn't be removed with pure force she wanted to have as many tools at her disposal as possible to deal with it.

Nymara, meanwhile, was taking her time considering what to do. Her raven-haired master didn't question this or push her to act: she just watched with those intense golden eyes, patience incarnate as she observed the way Nymara looked at the obstacle, the small movements she made as she considered how to best deal with the challenge ahead of her, the way she eventually seemed to get inspiration from Lucky, the cat knight who she'd only returned to the guild with today. If he was able to reliable help give Nymara inspiration then his company might be even more useful than Akemi had anticipated. However, that was secondary.

She only moved once Nymara had successfully passed the test, launching a fireball with a strong punch that described a shallow arch through the air before smashing into the stone wall and blowing it to smithereens. Fortunately there was enough space between the barrier and the pillars that the embers and tongues of flame that spread out from the explosion didn't touch any of them. "You did, yes." She confirmed, although she didn't think Nymara really needed to be told that. "With that you've passed the first of four trials. Come." She motioned for the redhead to follow her as she walked along the path to the exit Nymara's strike had exposed.

Along the way she spoke up once more. "It was a good idea to combine your magic with a strike. Gathering the fire around your fist concentrates it, and letting your punch guide it controls the trajectory without sacrificing power." Truthfully she had been expecting Nymara to try a narrow breath attack, as those were usually one of the strongest moves in a dragon slayer's arsenal and could be focused with some training. The fire punch was definitely a more creative solution. "But you'll need to start training it from now on. Not only do you need to form and fire the attack a lot faster, but you need to get familiar with it. A powerful attack still doesn't help if it doesn't occur to you to use it when you need it."

Passing through the doorway they entered a second room, this one considerably smaller than the first hallway. It was made of the same stone, but the floor was missing in the second half of the room, leaving only a narrow path to the next door. A metal screen with regularly spaced holes separated the abyss from the floor Akemi, Lucky, and Nymara were standing on. The wall on the other side was also filled with small alcoves, each holding an unlit candle.

"This metal screen is controlled by a lock which reacts to light. However, it requires a code to open." Akemi pointed at the candles. "The light receptors are behind those candles. The ones you need to light up to get the screen out of the way are there, there, there, there, there, and there." There were several dozen alcoves, but the assassin only pointed at six of them: a group of three, a group of two, and a single one. "If any of the other candles are also lit the screen won't open. The candles also need to remain lit for half a minute, so if you melt the candles they won't remain lit for long enough. You can light them one by one, but even if lit the normal way the candles should only last two minutes, so once the first candle has been lit you've got one and a half minutes to light the other five."

Like before, she stepped out of the way even as she turned around to face her apprentice. "For the previous test you needed to control your flame while maintaining a high output. This time around you have to control the path as well as the power. Begin when you're ready."

In theory, this test should be easier since the candle wall was only a scant few meters beyond the metal screen, and Nymara wouldn't have to worry about maintaining high power at a distance. Akemi suspected, however, that the level of precision and restraint required to pass this trial would take all of Nymara's concentration: Her flames were as spontaneous and lively as her personality.

Current Appearance:

@Nymara

It looked like Nymara was taking the lessons she was learning here to heart, to Akemi's satisfaction. It had been entirely possible that even if she figured out how to deal with these challenges she'd consider these more careful techniques too half-hearted for her more passionate fighting style. Akemi would drill control into the firebrand one way or another, but the more enthusiastic Nymara was about the process the better. Not only would it make the progress easier but also make better results, as you could only unleash your full potential if your heart was into it.

"Versatility could be considered a power in and of itself, even if it's one many people often overlook because they think raw, destructive potential is all they need." She did find it a bit disappointing that so many people would neglect the many different ways they could apply their magic in favour of sticking to what they already knew. "But your companion is correct: all these challenges can be overcome as long as you think carefully about what you can do and how to best apply it to the current situation."

The dark claw mage raised an eyebrow as she heard Nymara's muttered comment. Given the lack of alternatives she assumed that her apprentice was thinking about Vulcanis, the fire dragon who'd taught her magic in the first place. If she ever met that one again she'd have some words for him on how he seemingly only ever bothered to teach Nymara about raw force and completely neglected control and precision. Exactly the kind of musclehead who Akemi found disappointing and more than a little infuriating.

That aside, Akemi was glad that Nymara had picked up Lucky from somewhere. He seemed to be exactly what she needed: a voice of reason who'd encourage her to be a bit more thoughtful about her path forward. Delusions about knighthood aside, the cat was aware that you couldn't fix everything just passion, and Nymara listened to his advice. Although a part of her hoped that Lucky wouldn't become too vital: she wouldn't want her apprentice to become less interested in what her mentor had to say.

But right now it got Nymara to slow down and think about how to solve the puzzle. The answer ended up being rather similar to how she passed the first test, namely by using her hands to guide her flames. This time, however, there was also the control of fire that Akemi had been looking for, to keep them weak and manageable rather than roaring at full power. With Nymara's finger guns she would quickly light the appropriate candles and lift the metal barrier keeping them trapped in this room. "Well done." The black-haired assassin commented as she stepped forward. "I noticed you even thought to compensate for the possibility that your aim would be off. It's preferable to refine your skills so such things aren't necessary, but it's good to be aware of your limitations and address them." She motioned for Nymara to follow as they entered the next room.

The next room would look pretty simple, being square in shape with no real decorations or anything. The only things standing out were a scale hanging from a chain leading up into a hole in the ceiling in the middle of the room, and a giant slab of stone covering a sizeable portion of the wall on the far end of the room, which was also attached to chains which disappeared into a slit in the ceiling. "Incidentally, this test will also show me if you're any good at art." Akemi joked with a smirk. "After all, ain't no point in being pretty if you can't also be productive with your hands."

As she came to a halt next to the scale she turned around to face Nymara once more, her expression turning more serious. "This test doesn't have a failure mode, but that's because the level of precision requires means you'll probably need several tries. It's fairly simple: the slab of stone you see is blocking the path forward, and it's connected to this scale through a pulley system in the ceiling." She held out one hand, shadows leaking out and obscuring sight for a moment before retreating to reveal that she was now holding a large chunk of brown, clay-like material. "By filling the scale with this stuff you can lift the stone up and proceed, but it needs to be a precise amount."

To demonstrate this point she dropped the chunk onto the scale which immediately sunk down all the way to the floor. The stone slab rose up at a much faster rate, disappearing into the ceiling (with the faint sound of something clicking like a bolt sliding in place), but in the process revealed that there were more chains attached to the bottom... which resulted in another slab of stone getting pulled up, out of the floor, to block the door once more. "If you put too much weight on the scale the second slab will rise up. There's a spring-loaded mechanism in the ceiling that will ensure it will stay in the right position for us to pass if you put in the right amount of weight, but it's got a very small error margin."

As she took hold of the chunk once more the scale rose up to its original position and the stone slabs on the far end sunk down with another faint clicking sound. Akemi walked over to Nymara and held out the chunk to place it in her apprentice's hands. "This material will become softer when heated up so you can freely change its shape and remove or add parts. It can be reheated as many times as you want, which is why you don't have to worry about failing the test if you mess up the first time. That said, if you heat it up too much it'll turn liquid and you'll have to scrape it off the floor." Once Nymara had taken the chunk Akemi would step to the side, watching the redhead with her golden eyes. "You must use this material and you can't receive help. Begin when you're ready."

While Akemi wouldn't say it out loud, she'd actually spent hours preparing for this test. The reason for that was that she had to calibrate the mechanisms used in the test to make sure they'd work exactly as intended. Even if the magic of the training room meant she could modify the parts with but a thought she still had to do all the testing by hand. To avoid Nymara having to spend just as much time figuring out the exact weight required to move the stone slabs into the right position she'd incorporated a hint into the design of the test: the scale was shaped like a bowl, and a sphere whose diameter matched that of the bowl would provide the correct weight, and while Nymara could use another shape it would probably be easiest to just make a sphere which filled the bowl exactly.

While this time Nymara didn't have to worry about hitting things she wasn't allowed to hit she now had to face a different challenge: she'd have to display excellent control over the temperature of her flames. Too hot and the material would just splash onto the floor, too cold and she'd have a hard time sculpting it into the right shape and volume.

Current Appearance:

@Nymara

It seemed both Nymara and Lucky were interested in this third test that Akemi had created, even if it was the cat who was interested in the mechanism while her apprentice was paying more attention to the chunk of clay she now had in her hands. The raven-haired assassin nodded towards the feline knight as he noted the amount of effort which must have gone into this part of the exam. "I'm not a professional engineer, but I did make sure that the mechanism would perform as required." Of course, the lack of a proper education in the field had meant that she had to rely significantly more on trial and error than a professional would have done, and most likely they would have considered her work amateurish. That said it would suffice for the task, as it really wasn't that difficult in the end. Just add enough weight to the scale to lift the stone slabs without overpowering the spring that was holding the stone from moving too far.

"Whether art is more difficult than defeating a wyvern is up for debate. While it might not require as much combat ability art not only requires skill but also creativity." Art was definitely a tricky subject, a lot more so than combat in certain ways. The best artists were often described as being insane to greater or lesser extent, but that was merely because to create something which awed and inspired others you needed one of two things, and preferably both: an obsession which allowed you to push your skill to a level beyond the mundane, and a mind which conceived things others couldn't imagine without your assistance. Art came in many different forms, but all forms of art shared the trait that they were abnormal, whether that was abnormal in the level of skill or its very nature.

At least Nymara was as enthusiastic as usual, so Akemi could just stand there and watch her go at it. Although it did seem that the art comment had led to her apprentice getting sidetracked and forgetting the actual task as she was too busy playing with the clay. It made Akemi wonder if she had a lot of opportunity to play with such things as a child: Vulcanis probably wouldn't have been the strictest father, but at the same time he might not have understood the appeal of this kind of playing around.

Still, she wasn't going to remind Nymara of what she was supposed to be doing unless it looked like the redhead was truly planning to spend hours fooling around. Instead, she just tilted her head as Nymara quickly created a clay imitation of Lucky. It seemed like her imagination focused on what was in front of her. Not surprising, given her straightforward nature.

As she had suspected Nymara's first attempts at actually passing the test were of a rather crude nature, just cutting off parts of the clay to try and get the right amount. While that approach could work given enough time, Akemi would prefer it if the other dragon mage realized that there was a more practical way to approach this. She'd given a pretty blatant clue as to how much weight the scale needed to get the desired effect, after all.

Luckily Nymara might be straightforward, but she wasn't stupid. Once she actually focused on the task in front of her she seemed to understand what she was supposed to do pretty quickly. In the background Akemi nodded in approval as the fiery slayer got to work moulding the clay into a spherical shape matching the curvature of the scale, and once the weight was placed in the scale the first stone slab would rise up, revealing the door. The lack of a clicking sound indicated that the spring was keeping the second slab from blocking the door, thus also confirming that Nymara had successfully passed the test.

"You grasped the idea faster than I had expected. Although most artists wouldn't feel very intimidated by a plain sphere." She balanced her praise with some dry commentary as she walked over to the door. "Aside from the importance of precision this trial also required you to pay attention to the tools and information available to you. Knowing just how much heat is required to shape the clay without turning it liquid, but also noticing that the scale itself indicated how much weight would be required." Her golden eyes sought out Nymara's. "Even if you've got both precise control and power you should still think about how to best approach whatever obstacle or challenge you're facing. It could mean the difference between success and failure, and even in more straightforward scenarios it could lead to more efficient and effective ideas."

Leading the way through the door she motioned for the other two to follow. "Now that you've passed the first three tests I doubt you'll fail the fourth, but don't get too confident. This last test once again can be failed, and will not only test your control but also your patience."

The next chamber had four remarkable features: the first was that it was freezing inside, with Akemi quickly removing the doorway they just passed through to keep the temperature from changing. The second was that the exit wasn't blocked, but instead just had a very heavy lock on it. The third was that the entire floor was one big metal grate, the holes small enough that one could easily stand on it but big enough that if you were to drop something out of your pockets it'd probably be lost in the dark below. The fourth remarkable feature was that one wall was completely obscured by a giant slab of blue ice which reached almost all the way to the ceiling and had to be at least a meter thick.

"Your final challenge will be to retrieve the key to the door that leads out of the training room." Akemi herself didn't show any signs of being bothered by the cold, despite her outfit being most definitely unsuited for the winter. Instead, she just pointed towards the ice wall. "Said key is on top of the ice wall, and you'll have to melt the wall to get to the key. No jumping or climbing."

Placing a hand on her hip she turned around to face the other two. "You'll fail if the key falls through the floor. And as you don't know the exact location of the key recklessly melting the entire wall won't work." While it wasn't visible behind the ice Akeya had covered the wall in a thin layer of metal that matched the composition of the key to prevent the other dragon mage from figuring out the location through either scent or sound. "You'll have to keep a tight grip on which parts of the wall you're melting and at what speed it melts. This also means controlling your aura."

White mist left Akemi's mouth as she spoke, although a very acute observer might notice that when she was silent no mist formed at all. "When you get excited, whether it's positive or negative, you heat up your surroundings without thinking about it. That's fine in your daily life, but you need to be able to keep that under control when it counts. For this test you'll have to patiently melt the wall at a steady pace without getting frustrated or overly impatient." She gave Nymara a light grin. "In short, you need to keep your hotness in check. Difficult, I know, but sometimes it's better to not be the centre of attention."

Her expression turned serious as she walked to the other, unoccupied wall. Turning around she leaned her back against it and folded her arms, motioning towards the ice wall with her bandaged hand. "Begin when you're ready." She didn't doubt that Nymara could do this, although this test more than the previous three might be a poor match for the redhead's fiery attitude. It wasn't like she was easily agitated, but she definitely wasn't the type to remain calm, especially when confronted with tedious work that couldn't be rushed.

Current Appearance:

@Nymara

"Perfect condition is one way to describe it." Akemi answered cryptically. However, she'd remain silent otherwise so as to let Nymara focus on the task at hand. While the task was supposed to be difficult and address the fire mage's flaws it would be unreasonable to expect her to tackle the challenge while being distracted. Most likely she'd need all her focus to melt the ice at a steady pace, given how she usually didn't bother to control her heat at all.

She did raise her eyebrows when Nymara's first course of action was to literally just punch the ice, shards flying from the points of impact and sliding through the holes in the floor to disappear into the dark below without a sound, no indication of how deep it truly was. Akemi hadn't wanted Nymara to be capable of just getting to the key after it had already fallen through the grate, so breaking through the metal and jumping down was... inadvisable, to say the least. Not that she'd actually let her apprentice fall to her death.

It did seem like otherwise, Nymara did understand the point of the exercise, so Akemi just watched as the ice wall slowly but surely began to melt as the redhead tried to release her heat at a more modest level. The area around Akemi remained frosty as she was on the other side of the room, but she could see that the surface of the wall of ice was slowly beginning to glisten as the uppermost layer was turned to water. For now, everything seemed to be going decently... but she could also tell that Nymara's impatience was causing some instabilities, such as when she actually audibly shouted in frustration only to realize her mistake. Akemi wouldn't show it on her face as her apprentice looked at her audience, but once Nymara was once again focused on the task ahead of her the raven-haired assassin facepalmed silently. She had no doubt that Nymara would become quite disheartened if she messed up the final challenge after having come so far. Still, that should just encourage her to focus and ensure she didn't mess this up.

And she appeared to take this lesson to heart. Akemi wouldn't voice it, but she watched with approval as Nymara tuned out everything else in favour of tackling the obstacle in front of her. She'd have to learn how to balance her attention between multiple tasks in the future, but the dark claw mage understood the importance of pacing. Those who would throw their students into the deep without any preparation weren't just being tough, they were being stupid. The idea that baby birds would get deliberately thrown out of their nest to learn how to fly was a myth, either made up for the explicit purpose of justifying 'tough love' teaching or just conveniently co-opted by those who supported such methods. If your goal was for your student to actually succeed your task was to figure out how to push them while keeping in mind their limitations.

As the air in the room slowly heated up the ice wall would glisten more and more, even if Nymara was doing her best to keep it in check. Unfortunately, even if she was doing her utmost to keep herself calm her natural state still would cause her surroundings to heat up at least a little bit: complete suppression of her aura might be a bridge too far. But she was already doing about as well as Akemi had expected, and if she kept this up getting the key shouldn't be an issue...

Akemi could tell when Nymara found the key because suddenly a new wave of heat filled the room and the ice began to fall apart, parts of it sliding down and into the abyss below as fractures in the ice had melted faster than the rest. Where before the room had been pleasantly chilly it was now becoming more like a sauna, with steam wafting from the ice wall and rising up from the dark below, as Nymara's heat managed to reach that far down as well. Akemi didn't move, although she did have to resist the urge to facepalm again as Nymara almost ruined all the progress she'd made so far by first getting excited, then panicked. As the situation only escalated the dark claw mage would straighten up a little as the steam became dense enough to obscure her vision. While the dark couldn't hide anything from her eyes a thick fog was another matter entirely.

Once she'd judged that things had come to a conclusion she walked over to where Nymara had broken through the metal grating to catch the key before it fell too far down. "This is why it's important to keep calm even when things are going wrong." She commented as she came to a stop next to her hotheaded apprentice and placed a hand on her hip. This definitely was a good example of achieving the objective while failing the criteria. Lucky and Nymara both seemed aware of it as well, leaving it up to Akemi to think of what to do next.

Truth be told, she did need a moment to decide how to handle this. Obviously, Nymara had failed to achieve the test as it was intended to be passed. Some might argue in favour of creative solutions, but Akemi had set out this challenge with a specific goal in mind. Creativity was not what Nymara needed to learn at this point: control was what was important here.

On the other hand, she had gotten the key, and it wasn't like she'd completely disobeyed the spirit of the challenge. She'd just slipped up at the end and desperately done her best to not let it be in vain, rather than give up when things had escalated to a point of no return.

Eventually, she made a decision. Reaching out with her unoccupied hand she'd first gently take hold of her apprentice's chin, making Nymara look at her as her own golden eyes studied the troubled gaze the redhead held. She'd then take hold of the hand holding the key and retrieve it, studying that as well. While it looked a bit blackened because of the flames it otherwise was in good shape.

"...It's far from ideal, but it'll do. You pass." She'd give Nymara a moment to internalize this before continuing. "That said, I could just as easily have said you failed because of what happened in the end. There's three reasons I didn't." She held up three fingers on the hand now holding the key.

"The first is that you approached every challenge appropriately. Some might argue in favour of thinking outside of the box, but these four challenges all served a purpose in testing your weaknesses. Trying to work around the restrictions I gave you would have meant avoiding your own flaws." She frowned. "Note that this doesn't mean creativity and ingenuity aren't important, because they are vital, but sometimes achieving all objectives requires abiding by the rules."

"The second is that you're aware that what happened at the end was a failure. You lost control and ended up resorting to your usual approach in an attempt to salvage the challenge. If you'd tried to justify this to either yourself or me I would have failed you. That you don't means you understand that this is something you have to work on." She scoffed. "While we strive to succeed failure is rarely a death sentence. Those who refuse to accept that they messed up are fools who deny themselves the opportunity to improve."

"As for the third reason..." She held up the key. "Even in the end when you were melting the floor to grab the key you managed to avoid damaging it." She twirled the key around one finger as she continued. "It would be easy to call it luck, but it shows that you can exert control even in the midst of panic. That, and retrieving the key so we could get out of this room was the de facto requirement for passing the test. If you'd broken the key I couldn't have let you pass no matter how virtuous your actions were."

Letting go of Nymara's hand Akemi turned towards the door. "You've still got a lot to improve on, but your performance was adequate. I'll approve your rank up. Now let's get out of here before our clothes get soaked." They were, after all, standing in a room where quite a lot of ice had been turned into steam. Steam which was also beginning to cool down and condensate now that Nymara's emotions were no longer flaring up. With her usual gait, Akemi would walk towards the exit to let the both of them out.

Current Appearance:

@Nymara